You walk out of Centennial, happy to be free from class and greeted by the spring sun warming your cheeks. Thanks to the weather, there’s a group of guys playing volleyball on the quad, shirtless. You pause to watch them and catch a group of your girlfriends also enjoying the sun, not too far from the guys. Taking advantage of this, you take the route closest to the hot volleyball players to get a better look. You call out and wave to your friends, getting their attention as well as a few of the shirtless player’s—just what you wanted. Your floral dress is super cute and you know you look good.
You shoot the guys a smile when suddenly the wind catches the edge of your dress and whips it up to your waist, exposing your underwear to the whole quad! Pushing down the fabric, you scurry over to your friends and hide yourself in the middle of the group, with surprised looks and chuckling echoing in your head.
Wearing skirts and dresses is not for the weak.
After an endless winter, spring is finally here! And we know what that means: cute skirts, fun dresses, and our favorite pair of open toe shoes! Why not celebrate the emergence of spring with clothes that have been gathering dust in our closets, begging to be worn?
Well, as many of us have experienced, possibly even something like the story above, there are certain hazards that come with wearing our spring wardrobe. The tip to avoiding wind malfunction in skirts or dresses is to wear leggings, yoga shorts, or dancer shorts underneath. Of course, if manufacturers would actually design built in shorts for some of these dangerous pieces (like they do for kids and various junior sizes), women wouldn’t have such a large problem. Until then, my recommendation is yoga or dance shorts—they’re tighter and shorter and the seams don’t show as much.
Wind is not the only enemy to spring and summer apparel: backpack can be just as problematic. If enormous purses or bags are too much on your shoulders or just not your style, then like me, you’re likely to use a backpack for class.
Imagine sitting in the shuttle traveling to your favorite class and you catch your reflection in the driver’s giant mirror. Your hair is in full cooperation and you’re wearing the new polka-dot dress from your birthday; it’s a pretty good start to the day. You step off the shuttle and begin the walk to Bakeless. You feel the rubbing of your dress against your backpack, but keep moving. The wind isn’t out and when you look down you can see the hem of your dress against the front of your thighs. You near Bakeless, but begin to feel a slight draft on your backside. As you reach to check the back of your dress, you realize there is nothing between your hand and your undies! The fabric had slowly bunched up underneath your backpack! The horror!
Most students wear their backpack low, but this trend should be avoided. Not only is it worse for your back, but it causes the dress or skirt ride-up, like the one that happened to my good friend above. It may feel uncomfortable or dorky at first, but which would you rather have: a higher sitting backpack or your own underwear fashion show?
Bending over and sitting down are the most common challenges women face with short dresses and skirts. The difficulty in these actions stem from the difference in fabric coverage. While standing, the skirt or dress lays at the proper length, but bending over shortens it and can cause a wardrobe malfunction.
The same thing goes for getting into and out of desks. Just the other day, I went to take a front row seat in my English class in a black skirt. I wasn’t thinking, (it was the first time in a while I could wear something warm) and as I sat down, I bent at the waist instead of the knees and showed off a sliver of my underwear. No one said anything, probably out of politeness, but my face got hot like I had sunburn. Moral to the story: bend at the knees, not at the waist!
Bathrooms can also be a menace to dresses. Not only can your dress or skirt (if it’s longer) fall into the toilet bowl, but pulling up your undies can create a problem as well! You probably already understand the issue, but just to clarify, I’m going to give you one last little story…
Stuck in Sutliff all day, you go to the girls’ room before your next class. There were no presentations to dress up for, so you decided to wear a fun summer dress. Walking out of the stall, you check your appearance, wash your hands, and turn to walk out of the bathroom. Just as you do, you catch sight of your backside in the mirror and realize you tucked a part of your dress into your underwear! Yikes!
Something like this is not completely uncommon, but it can be avoided. So, next time you go to the bathroom in a dress or long skirt, make sure to check yourself before you walk out of the stall!
Well ladies, there you have it, our spring and summer wardrobe caution tips. Just for a recap, they include to: be conscious of your hemline on a windy day, wear your backpack higher up on your back, bend at the knees and not at the waist, and always, always, always check your backside before you leave the stall.
As for getting into and out of cars without flashing underwear, I haven’t yet figured out a proper method. All my attempts involve looking outrageously ungraceful.
If anyone has discovered a graceful technique, please let me know.